Pitman connection.



W. L. GHRYSLER'G: J. W. KAYS.

PITMAN CONNECTION.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9, 190a.

Patented May 11, 1909.

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WILLIAM L. CHRYSLER AND JOSEPH W.

RAYS, OF EUGENE, OREGON.

PITMAN CON NEC'TION.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM L. CHRYS- LER and JosEPH W. United States, residing at county of Lane and State of Oregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pitman Connections, of which the following is a specification.

This invention contemplates certain new and useful improvements in cutting devices of that type usually employed in mowing machines or similar agricultural instruments, and the object of the invention is an improved coupling that is designed to effectually connect the pitman to the cutter bar,

and may be readily operated to cause the j pitman to quickly release the cutter bar without bolts or resorting to other tedious means now employed, in order to permit the detachment of the cutter bar from the machine, as may be desired for repairing purposes or to replace the cutter bar by a new one.

W'rth this and other objects in view that will more fully appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists in certain constructions and arrangements of the parts that we shall hereinafter fully describe, and then point out the novel features thereof in the appended claim.

For a full understanding of the invention and the merits thereof, and to acquire a knowledge of the details of construction, refand positively erence is to be had to the following descri f tion and accompanying drawing, in whic Figure 1 is a perspective view of our improved pitman connection applied; Fig. 2 is a horizontal section thereof, showing the jaws associated with the head Fig. 3 is a similar view, showing the movable jaw in inoperative position and also indicating in dotted lines the position assumed by the clam ing member to permit the complete detac iment of the jaws from the head; and,

ig. 4 is a detail perspective view of the clamping member.

orresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawing, by the same reference characters.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral 1 designates the cutter bar which is designed to cooperate with the finger bar of an ordinary cutting device, and which may be of any desired construction or design except Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed July 9, 1908.

that it is formed at one end with KAYS, citizens of the Eugene, in the l the necessity of removing l Patented May 11, 1909. Serial No. 442,756.

a spherical 5 head 2. l 3 designates a pitman which is designed I to be eccentrically connected at one end to a rotary element (crank disk) and which is {arranged at its other end for connection l with the cutter bar so as to impart a reciprocating motion thereto, metal plates being F carried at two opposite sides of the pitman l near the last named end thereof and proj jecting beyond such end to constitute spaced l jaws, one jaw 4 of which is secured rigidly to the pitman, and the other aw 4 of which jis secured to and supported upon a fiat spring 8 that normally exerts its tension to swing the jaw 4 outwardly away from the l rigid j aw 4 and hold the former in an inoperative relation to the latter, and that extends longitudinally beyond the jaw 4 and is j rigidly secured at such end to the pitman. The jaw 4 is designed to be swung inwardly against the tension of the flat spring 8 into operative relation to the rigid jaw, and in order to permit such lateral movement, the corres onding end of the pitman is preferably eveled, as shown. The jaws 4 and 4 are formed in their opposing walls near their extremities with transversely alining sockets 5 that are arranged to be associated with and engage the head 2 to afford a flexible connection between the pitman and the cutter bar.

In order to hold the movable jaw 4 in operative relation to the other jaw, we provide a transverse bolt 6 passing between the respective jaws and projecting beyond the movable aw 4", and is arranged to support a clamping member contiguous to the outer face thereof. This clamping member consists of an Lshaped bar 7, one arm of which is preferably longer than the other and which is formed with a longitudinally disposed slot 9 by means of which it is mounted upon the rojecting end of the bolt, and retained tliereon by a nut 10, the slot extending substantially throughout the length of the shorter arm of the bar and also extending part of the length of the other arm, and terminating short of an inwardly disposed lug 11 that is formed upon the longer arm of the bar at an interme iate point, as shown, and that is arranged in the normal position of the clamping member to hear 1 against the movable jaw 4.

I 12 designates a retaining bar which is ried thereby.

preferably constructed of spring metal and l of thelatter formed in the shorter arm of the is rigidly secured at one end to the extremclamping member, thus moving the lug 11 ity of the longer arm of the bar 7, and which out of contact with the movable; jaw and peris normally held in spaced relation to the l mitting the same to yield outwardly under pitman and is arranged to be swung intens-ion sufficiently to disassociate the jaws wardly toward the latter and held under lfrom the head.

tension in engagement with a catch 13. car- From: the above description,

with the accompanying drawing, it will be apparent that we have provided a simple, durable and efficient construction of coupinv connection Before proceeding with the description of l, the operation of our improved connection I or coupling, it is to be assumed that the parts are in their normal position, as just described, with the movable jaw in inoperative relation to the rigid jaw, and the retaining bar released from the catch and in spaced relation to the pitman. In order to move l ling device by means of which the jaws may l he held in engagement with the head of the l cutter bar against the tension of the flat spring, which maybe readily operated to re lievethe flat spring of tension and permit 1 r p T 1 the same to posltively cisassociate the aws the jaw 4 inwardly to clutch the head 2' of from the head, and which consists of comthe cutter bar and cooperate with the rigid i paratively few parts that maybe easily and jaw to establish a flexible and operative concheaply manufactured andreadily assembled, nection between the cutter bar and the pit 1 Having thus described the invention, what man, the retaining bar 12 is swung inwardly we claim is:

toward the pitman and its free end is en- In apitman connection, the combination of gaged with the catch 13 and is held under 4 jaws formed of stiff material and one of tension in such engagement. During this which is rigidly secured to the pitman, a fiat movement, and in fact in most of the posispring also secured to the pitmanv and movtions of the clamping bar, the bolt 6 passes ably supporting the other jaw and normally through the portion of the slot 9 formed in the longer arm of the bar 7 with the nut supported contiguous to the outer face thereof, so that such nut constitutes a fulcrum about which the clamping member moves upon the movement of the retaining bar, thereby moving the lug 11 inwardly against the movable jaw 4 to swing the latter toward the rigid jaw against the tension of the flat spring 8 and effect the association of the jaws with the head 2.

When it is desired to render the connection between the cutter bar and the pitman inoperative, the catch 13 is disengaged from the retaining bar 12, thus permitting the parts to assume their normal positions and releasing the flat spring 8 to cause the same to swing the movable jaw outwardly away from the rigid jaw 4. In case it should be desirable or necessary to entirely disconnect the parts of the coupling, that is detach the jaws from the head, the retaining bar is swung to assume a position substantially erpendicular to the pitman, so as to. move the bolt: 6 through the slot 9 into the portion same in inoperative relation to the rigid jaw, a head adapted for engagement by such jaws, a bolt extending transversely of the jaws and projecting beyond the movable jaw, an L- shaped clamping memberformed with a longitudinal slot that extends through both arms thereof and in; which works the projecting end of the bolt, one arm of said member being formed beyond the corresponding terminal of, the slot with an inwardly disposed lug arranged to impinge against the movable jaw, a yielding retaining bar secured to such lug-carrying arm and disposed in substantially longitudinal alinement therewith, and means for detachably engaging the retaining bar to hold the same under tension and force the lug against the movable jaw.

In testimony whereof we our signatures in presence of two witnesses. WILLIAM li. CHRYSLER. JOSEPH W. KA'YS.

l Witnesses:

exerting a tension thereupon to hold the- 

